A New Purpose
by D-Ranked Writer
Summary: Finding himself in a world so different yet so alike his own, Naruto struggles to survive alongside the sole survivor of a time long since passed. Both having lost it all before their very eyes, they struggle to find and hold onto a new purpose.
1. Product First Day

**Hello and welcome to my first story. I've been lurking for the longest and been wanting to post for just as long. So I decided my first story would be a Fallout crossover. I hope you guys like it. And for those who don't care for a long AN, there will be some info at the bottom.**

 **Enjoy!**

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Miranda sobbed quietly on her knees in front of cryostasis chamber that held the well preserved corpse of her husband. She was not sure how long he was asleep after those people had stolen her daughter but even now as she mourned her loss, she realized she had to move forward and find her. For both of their sake.

Miranda wiped away her tears on the blue sleeves of her vault suit and stood, with some trouble as her legs felt tired from who knows how long of not utilizing them. She pressed her hand to the glass containing her husband and her ache renewed. She wouldn't the able to move him. She simply was not strong enough at the moment but she could at the very least take a reminder of him before she left. Miranda pressed the large round button on a small terminal next to the chamber and was disappointed when nothing happened.

Miranda looked about the room, trying her best not to look at the people she once considered neighbors, acquaintances, and even friends. Their vital signs were displayed on the terminal closest to their pod. They were all dead.

That's when the soft green hue of a computer caught her eye. It seemed important as it was the only one in the room, so she decided to investigate. Bending over slightly Miranda decided it better to sit when a dull yet sharp pain bit at her lower back, sending her jolting straight in attempt for relief. She was glad to discover the terminal did not require a password to access as it was already logged in by an administrator. Listed on the screen were a list of prompts. The status report for the stasis pods drew her attention first. They all appeared to have gone off line for two hours now due to a power failure.

The prompt lead her to the status of each individual person. Her morbid curiosity got the better of her. She checked on the status of Jane Peters. A woman she remembered from her church and not much else. Her basic physical attributes aside, the computer informed her that she died of asphyxiation. As did the two others she looked through. Miranda could not bring herself to look at the status of her husband.

She had digressed long enough. Miranda was about to return to the directory when something caught her eye. A pod with an unknown name as the label. In the end she decided to leave it alone. Whoever was in the pod was dead, she didn't need to be told that. Finally Miranda found what she was looking for and overrode all of the pod's locks.

Miranda found her eyes burning anew as she once again stood in front of the pod that held her husband. Her hand had been resting on the button to open for close to an hour.

"I need to find Lindsey." Miranda steeled her heart and pressed the button. She could not contain the tears at the wound that ended her husband's life. It was beginning to bleed now that the temperature began to rise. Miranda gently grabbed the silver wedding band off his finger and gave him a lingering final kiss on the lips, ignoring the cold of his skin.

"I'll find her, love, I promise. For both of us."

She couldn't look at him again after that. She wanted their kiss to be their final and most treasured memory together. Miranda walked numbly past the pods on her way out. She paused when her eyes fell upon the still form of one she did not recognize. That's not to say she knew everyone listed on the files, but it the fact that frozen was a young man, almost a child.

Despite her better judgment Miranda walked to the pod and looked in to confirm what she thought she saw. The blond man had two sets of three whisker like scars perfectly parallel to one another on each cheek. She looked up at the pod number nine. His heart rate monitor was completely off, but Miranda didn't hold any hope. He was dead. But who was he? It clicked in her mind that he was the unknown. Miranda knew she had to get moving as soon as possible but she was always a curious girl before she was a woman. Even now she could not help but cross the way back to the terminal, her back now allowing a quick look from her stance.

Name: Unknown

Date of birth: Unknown

Sex: Male

Height: 6'2

Weight: 200 Lbs

Hair color: Blond

Eye color: Blue

Status: Alive

Condition: Critical

Miranda almost ran to the pod holding the young man. She could not believe there was someone else alive! She slammed her fist on the opening button and anxiously awaited as the door lumbered open. Once it did she realized she had no idea what she should do. He remained unmoving but as she studied him closer she could see his chest rise and fall slow but steadily.

She slowly reached to touch his forehead and was surprised at how warm it felt. It was almost as if he was running a fever but much worse. Miranda was by no means knowledgeable when it came to medicine beyond the occasional home remedy passed on through the years, but common sense dictated that it was not healthy.

Her husband, for as much as she loved him, was gone. This man was not. Miranda resolved to do her best to save the him. She looped his arm around her shoulder and tried to pull his weight onto her center of gravity. Soon she realized this was a mistake with the unmoving body of a two hundred pound man.

Miranda cursed as she tried and failed to hold the man's body on her own. Unfortunately a combination of his weight and height overtook her own weakened strength, sending him toppling to the unforgiven ground beneath. Miranda fell close behind as she tried her best until the end. Miranda groaned as she found herself falling on the man's sturdy chest. She, however, was not given the opportunity to feel guilt as she was met with two crimson eyes.

Naruto looked down at the newly unconscious woman atop of him. The blond himself found himself wide eyed in shock of the vast information his eyes revealed to him. Information of a world vastly different than his own, yet similar in so many harrowing ways. War, like people, never seemed to change. From the memories of the woman, Miranda, he not only learned a new language, but of the end of the world.

Again.

Or perhaps the end of another world. Naruto couldn't be sure. Kaguya did something to him. Whatever it was happened too fast and behind his back. One moment he was recovering after a particularly harsh clash and now he was here. He was careless and this was the result.

Naruto callously pushed the woman off of him. His entire body ached in pain; the result of yet another of his failures. If he was to lift his shirt and channel his second source of chakra, nothing would happen. He lost Kurama much earlier before he lost the war and he certainly felt it. He was somehow frozen for who knows how long, and his body reminded him of that.

He looked about the room to see so much he could not understand. A rustic sky above him with similar flooring beneath and walls lined with strange machinery. Four walls buried hundreds of feet beneath the ground.

Naruto frowned in annoyance. He didn't like taking the others memories for many reasons, amongst the top being the confusion in understanding. He understood what most of the objects he was looking at were, and to some extent what purpose they held, limited by the woman's own knowledge, but not enough for him to feel comfortable. That, however, was not his main concern.

He looked down at the unconscious woman and frowned at her final memories. Not the death of her husband or disappearance of her daughter. It was disheartening, sure, but overshadowed by the massive explosion in the distance before she was frozen.

The humans of this time or world were limited in strength physically, but they more than made up for it in weaponry. In his opinion the atomic bomb was truly an amazingly horrifying weapon of mass destruction. If he was to make a comparison the only Jutsu to possibly match the atomic bomb in destructive power, would be a full powered Tailed Beast Bomb of about six Tails and above. Impressive to say the least, but trouble for it's after affects.

Radiation seemed to be as poisonous as Bijuu chakra from a Tailed Beast Bomb to everyone but the host him or herself. Only nuclear fallout seemed last far longer with much worse effects and no prejudice. It affected everyone and everything. Naruto didn't much like the idea of living his life in hole underground. The concept was new to him and even then he realized the problems it presented. Food and water were the obvious. He would have to plan something out or risk possibly dying of radiation poison on the surface above.

"Ugh, what happened?" Miranda groaned.

Naruto looked down at the woman who now awakening, holding her head in pain.

"You fainted."

Miranda jumped at the sudden voice, gruff and almost monotone. She didn't know whether to be happy or weary of the fellow survivor. She decided the latter was the smartest option. Miranda didn't remember what caused her to lose consciousness, with her last memory being their shared fall. Anything after that was beyond her.

"Who are you?" She asked as she wobbled to her feet.

"Naruto." He answered promptly.

"Miranda Fawks." She introduced herself by extending her hand.

Naruto looked at the hand but did not accept it.

"I'm going to look around for some water." Naruto said. He began to do so when he noticed the woman following close behind. He stopped and looked behind at her, "What are you doing?"

Miranda was momentarily confused before she became confrontational, "Listen Naruto, I don't really know what's going on but there's a skeleton over there and I haven't heard or seen any signs of life since I woke up. I think we should stick together until we can figure a way out of here. I need to…"

She appeared troubled.

"Outside? I don't think that'll be a good idea. The radiation would kill us before long." Naruto countered.

"I-" Miranda paused. She hadn't actually considered that, "But they took my daughter! I don't think they're still here."

Naruto's eyes widened in the slightest at the realization. He could remember the two scientists dressed from head to toe, a worrying sight, but the bald man who killed the woman's husband was clothed in what could be considered normal attire. Perhaps the radiation had since subsided? Or perhaps he disregarded his protective clothing for the moment. This only led to more questions.

"You're daughter, what are you going to do about that?" Naruto asked.

"I'm going to find her!" Miranda declared without hesitation.

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not sure," Miranda admitted after some time, "but I know that my little girls out there somewhere and she needs me. I won't stop until I find her!"

Miranda began to squirm under the young man's unrelenting gaze. It was almost as if his stare held her in place and it unnerved her. It wasn't lecherous as his eyes never disconnected from her own but she somehow felt as though she had to say something, do something. However before she could question his actions, Naruto nodded his head slightly.

"You're really set on finding your daughter, aren't you?" Naruto questioned a final time.

"Of course." Miranda stated firmly.

"I'll help you."

Miranda was taken aback by the declaration. He had agreed to a large task with so little ease. It was as if he didn't truly care about her situation, but rather had nothing else better to do. She may have needed all the help possible, but something about his attitude, his calm. It didn't sit well with her.

"Just like that?" She asked skeptically.

"Yes." He answered plainly.

"What's in it for you?" Miranda voiced her suspicions.

"I think survival is better done in numbers. And until we can find your daughter, you'll watch my back and I'll watch yours. Solidarity, if nothing else. Like it or not we're both in the stuck in the same situation. Miles underground with no clue of just what the hell is going on. " Naruto explained.

Miranda still did not believe the young man was being completely honest with her but she would take whatever help she could get. And did she ever need the help. She was but a housewife with a degree in finance. Miranda wasn't sure what Naruto used to do before the war but he certainly seemed like the strong and silent type. A lone wolf.

His mannerisms and rather impressive physique beneath the blue vault suit reassured her of that, reminding her of her husbands behavior in the days after being discharged from the army. And while Miranda was not fond of the idea of relying on a man not her husband for survival. She did not have much of a choice in the matter. For the sake of her daughter Miranda would entrust her safety in the hands of a complete stranger.

"Thank you."

Naruto nodded again.

"So what do we do now?" Miranda asked.

"For now we should explore the area and look for food and water, maybe even some weapons. I don't know what awaits us out there but I think we should be as best prepared as we can be." Naruto said.

"Makes sense. What should I look for?" She asked.

"We'll search together." Naruto explained sternly, "We can't be sure if we really are alone down here. We can't risk being caught by surprise while alone."

Yet another thing Miranda had not considered. She was, however, beginning to feel better about her agreement with Naruto. Not fully comfortable because of his vague reasons, but he seemed to know what he was doing. Until he proved distrustful, or until she learned to take care of herself, she would work with the man.

"Sounds like a plan. You lead the way."

Without another word Naruto began down the narrow hall in search of ailments. Truthfully he hoped to avoid conflict until he was armed. He had his chakra but it was critically low and he'd rather not explain how he was capable of doing what the people of Miranda's world considered impossible. He did not owe the woman an explanation should she come to discover his abilities, but the last thing he needed was to become a target to those power hungry within a world unfamiliar.

If they existed any longer.

Something scurried on the wall from around a bend and Naruto was met with a mighty loud screech almost directly into his ear.

"What the hell is that thing?" Miranda asked as she did her best hide behind Naruto without directly contacting the man.

"A giant roach?" Naruto too was taken by surprise at the oversized vermin. It did not appear to have noticed them as it remained in place, it's large antennae twitching ever so often.

"Kill it!" She shrieked as it turned in their direction, "Step on it!"

"Somehow I don't think I can just step on that thing." Naruto said pointedly.

That wasn't entirely true. Despite living in poverty for half of his life and coexisting with the insects, Naruto hated bugs and was admittedly unnerved by the size of it's pinchers. He could kill the thing with his bare hands if he needed to. He just didn't have the energy to want to. Unfortunately he wasn't given a choice as it, and a few other new arrivals, seemed to have set their sights on a new meal.

"They're coming!"

"Just stay behind me."

Naruto's eyes quickly scanned the narrow hall for a anything to aid him. The roaches moved fast. Naruto saw what he needed as they approached. Behind him Miranda had taken some steps back but held her ground. Just as the first insect neared Naruto jumped up and grabbed onto a rusted pipe. It snapped easily beneath his weight, as did the roach's head as Naruto landed down upon the creature. He quickly swung the pipe and killed a roach from the wall before kicking another away.

It was a sickening task but eventually Naruto killed off the final roach, leaving eight large and dead insects twitching about on the floor now stained in a viscous brown substance.

"Well that was something." Naruto said as he inspected his now ruined pipe, bent and cracked. He threw it on the ground and turned to his companion, who looked disgusted as she held her nose.

"That shouldn't be possible, should it?" She asked.

"It shouldn't but it somehow is. Now let's keep moving." He said.

"Okay," She sighed in worry, "after you."

They cautiously rounded a corner that led to a much larger room behind a door. Naruto slammed his fist on the door release and quickly stepped back. The room appeared to have been a living quarters as it was lined with beds, cots more like, with small rusted footlockers accompanying each bed. Aside from the odd wall locker and furniture the room was rather devoid. That's when they saw it.

Miranda gasped at the sight of what used to be a security officer of sorts, now just a skeleton clothed in black armor.

"Miranda." Naruto's firm voice helped to break her morbid fascination. "Check the footlockers for anything useful, anything else just leave. We can't afford to be weighed down until we've cleared the area."

Wordlessly Miranda nodded and left to do as told. Meanwhile Naruto walked to the long dead body and reached for the baton laying over it's broken hand. Whomever it was likely died clenching the weapon. Naruto gripped the baton and inspected it. He saw a button on the grip and figured it was to retract the weapon as it was divided in three sections. Out of curiosity he pressed it and nearly dropped the baton as electricity danced to life around the entire weapon.

"That'll be useful against the roaches right?" Miranda asked, slightly nervous. She had paused her search when she heard an odd crackle but could find the source.

Naruto looked over at her and nodded. "I think so. It's electrified so it should deal more damage to insects. Let's just hope roaches are the only thing that's mutated."

He did not like the idea of a giant spider.

"Really? How do you know that?"

"I can hear the electricity when I press the button." Naruto said. He could also feel the electricity beyond the raising of the hairs on his arms, but she didn't need to know that.

"Nifty."

"Yes. Did you find anything?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing yet but I'll keep looking." Miranda called back.

Naruto pressed the baton into it's shortest form and pocketed it into the large right pocket of his suit and joined the woman in searching. All together they found a single bottle of water and a few other useless items.

"I don't know about you but I sure am thirsty." Miranda said in indication of what she wanted.

"Just drink slowly." Naruto said.

"Why?" She asked as she sat on a cot to rest.

"Because you haven't had any actual fluids in your stomach for who knows how long. You'll get sick If you drink too much too fast." Naruto said as he joined her bedside and gladly accepted the remaining half of the bottle after she drank.

"Ugh, my whole body is sore." Miranda complained while she stretched her lower back.

Naruto said nothing as he continued to sip slowly on the water.

"So," Miranda drawled out once the silence became too heavy for her liking, "what did you do before the war? If I may ask."

"I'd rather not talk about it." Naruto replied quickly, the plastic bottle crinkled beneath his grip.

Miranda noticed and decided the subject was better left alone for the time being. Although his lack of answering, while completely understandable, did nothing to quell the uneasiness the essential stranger sitting next to her brought upon. Naruto surprised her by presenting her a pair of black shin guards that belonged to the deceased.

"Put those on." He instructed.

"Why?" Miranda asked.

"To keep you safe from the roaches. They'll bite your ankles before they get you anywhere else." Naruto said.

"Thanks." Miranda was once again swayed on her opinion of him, if only ever so slightly.

They continued on with their search of the vault, encountering many rooms of similar makes. They had even found more cryostasis pods. Unfortunately no one else was with life. On the fortunate side, they managed to find a kitchen and now had as many water bottles as they could carry. Food was something they did not find. Nothing edible in any case. They also found a gun in the Overseer's office, which Naruto now held in hand after multiple encounters with more mutated roaches.

After searching in every direction they discovered the vault was not as large as they both initially thought. None of the rooms accessible to the two yielded much in terms of survival. The vault seemed to have been built for short term use as there was nothing in terms of longtime survival. No renewable water source, signs of plant life, nothing.

Finally they found themselves at the vault's entrance or exit, depending on how one looked at it.

"It's not opening!" Miranda cried as she presses the terminal numerous times. A undiscernible voice warbled each time.

"What does it say?" Naruto asked as he inspected the skeletal remains of a scientist with a odd looking device attached to the arm.

"Something about administrative access needed, requiring something called a Pip-Boy. There's also a plug in here. I think we need a key of sorts." She said.

"Like this?"

Miranda turned to see Naruto holding a contraption in his hand, a Pip-boy if she wasn't mistaken. In his other hand was a yellow plug that connected to the personal computer. Upon closer inspection it appeared to match the reciprocal.

"Well what are you waiting for? Plug it in!"

"I'd rather you put the thing on." Naruto said as he handed the woman the Pip-boy, "I don't need that bulky thing slowing me down."

That answered her question before she could ask it. In the end Miranda readily accepted. Now that she remembered what a Pip-boy was she also remembered secretly she had always wanted to try on a personal computer. Being a housewife Miranda had no real purpose for a device normally used by those in high positions such as, doctors, scientists, and the occasional businessman. They usually cost a high sum only a career in the aforementioned could afford to pay.

"Alrighty then, how do you work this thing?" Miranda asked herself.

Naruto sat on a railing and began closely inspecting the foreign weapon, listening as the woman fumbled with the device. He almost found it amusing hearing the increasing frustration evident by the level of vulgarity in which her curses increased.

"A-W-K-S. That's my name, don't wear it out." Miranda laughed at her own joke, "Hey Naruto, what year and time do you think it is?" She asked from over her shoulder.

"No clue. Just input something for now. We'll figure it out eventually." Naruto advised without turning away from his task.

"Never mind, I think the computer here has the date." Miranda gasped. "No that can't possibly be right. It can't be 2277!"

"That a bad thing?" Naruto asked. Some of her memories were beginning to grow hazy, mostly the unimportant one's such as dates, names and a multitude of others.

"It was the year 2065 when I entered the vault!"

This also surprised Naruto. Over two hundred years frozen was a very long time to be out. He wondered for how long he was frozen. Or how he came to the vault in the first place. Whatever the case, he knew the answers would find him one day. They always tended to. Although at this point in time, Naruto was not sure he cared for the truth.

"So much time." Miranda said forlornly. She did not have high hopes for any of her extended family or friends to have survived the nuclear war, but to know so much time had eclipsed. It was disheartening. She was startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"I think we should keep moving forward. Your daughter's waiting for you."

His tone was lacked compassion but the gesture was enough for her. Miranda blinked away the tears and smiled at the thought of finding her daughter. Truthfully if not for her daughter she would willingly join her husband wherever he was. Miranda was never a religious person, but now more than ever she hoped there was someone above, watching over her family.

"You're right, thanks."

Naruto nodded and have the woman room to continue her task. Eventually Miranda was able to get the device working and was about to open the door.

"Do you think we should wait a bit or do you want to go now?" Miranda asked having plugged in her pip boy.

It was apparent that the poor woman was afraid to see what lay beyond the large door. They very well could be walking into their deaths, but the very same would ultimately achieved if they stayed. He would not lie to himself, Naruto was also feeling a twist of nerves he had not experienced in some time. Then again it had been some time since he was faced with such an unknown.

"I don't see what else we can do here." Naruto sighed at the situation, "We have water but we'll die in here if we can't find food. And then there's the matter of your daughter. The longer we're in here it's time wasted looking for her out there."

"But my husband," Miranda hated herself for nearly forgetting him." I want to bury him properly."

"And we will, Miranda. Just not right now. We need to establish ourselves before we can even think of moving the body. He's frozen so he shouldn't," Naruto paused and remembered causing the woman any more grief would only be counter productive, "your husband's body will be well preserved until we can come back to bury him."

"We will come back for him, right?" Miranda asked behind a thin pool of tears.

"Yes."

She needed more than that.

"Promise."

He was reluctant to give her more.

"I promise."

Naruto was now mature enough to realize his life meant more than his word. He would keep his promise so long as it didn't endanger him.

"Thank you, Naruto." Miranda said and pressed the button on her Pip-boy.

Instantly red lights began to flash and a siren blared as a metallic grinding filled the room. Both inhabitants watched on as a bridge lowered connecting the platform leading to the elevator. The process was almost painstakingly slow but eventually the way was cleared for Miranda and Naruto.

"I set it to auto lift. We should hurry on." Miranda instructed.

Naruto followed behind without question and soon the two found themselves ascending up to a cog shaped sky split down the middle. The door began to open, forcing the two to shield themselves in order to avoid random dabree such as rocks and dirt. Both saw the sun and were equally relieved to know it's presence was not shielded from them in a nuclear winter. However neither could have predicted what they saw once the elevator completely surfaced.

Naruto found himself almost physically sick as he felt the wild life with his abilities. The landscape was charred and appeared to be clinging dearly onto life. What little grass there was presented a sickly yellow color blended with grey and the odd shade of green. The trees weren't much better. They too held life but it felt so contaminated and unnatural. Then there was the structures. What little remained standing bore their skeletal innards for all to see.

Naruto was not of this world. Be it from another time or otherwise but even he felt burdened by the apocalyptic sight before him. A sense of helplessness began to creep on him and no matter what he did to reassure himself, he could not keep the feeling at bay.

The world was dying.

"Are you okay?"

Miranda's voice drew Naruto away from his thoughts, a welcomed distraction. She saw the disturbed look on his face and it only worried her more. Knowing the hardened young man was worried, frightened almost, made Miranda all the more nervous at what was to come.

Then again; perhaps she was expecting too much of the man younger than herself. He was as human as she, after all. However Miranda allowed herself to be presumptuous as she watched Naruto kill the overgrown insects with relative ease and handle the pistol as if he'd done so all his young life. This painted him in a picture that may have been obscured by circumstance. The realization only only made her own reality all the more daunting.

On the same front, Miranda could not deny the feeling of relative safety she felt in Naruto's presence. She wanted to believe it was indeed a feeling of solidarity as he mentioned earlier. Survival in numbers. In the absence of any other explanation it made sense.

"Yeah I-" Naruto answered after a moment, only to trail off again, "I honestly didn't know what to expect. I knew it would be bad but I just didn't think it would be this bad."

Miranda was in agreement and of similar thought. Two hundred years could help to both heal and destroy the earth under such radiation. She did not have to know much about the invisible substance to know it was bad. The aftermath was always exaggerated in movies and war propaganda, painting a picture of what a nuclear apocalypse would look like.

This was worse.

Naruto stepped forward and discretely activated his eyes, looking for anything and nothing in peculiar. He spotted a gathering of houses, the neighborhood Miranda lived in before she entered the vault.

He deactivated his eyes before turning to address the woman. "I see some houses down there.''

"Yeah that's where I used to live, it's uh," Miranda was plagued with memories of her pregnant life living in the suburbs, "it was called the Sanctuary Hills."

Naruto began slowly walking in the direction of the houses, prompting Miranda to follow him at her own pace as she sorted out her emotions. He truly did want to help her now, not only to find her daughter, but to come to terms with their shared reality. It would do neither good for her to get killed as a result of her being distracted by thoughts of grief. Naruto could not have her constantly distracted in a world unknown. For both of their sake he had figure out how to focus the woman trailing numbly behind him.

Their pace was slow and tedious because of her distraction. Naruto had to catch Miranda from falling multiple times down the steep inclines the hill provided. Each time she would utter a half-hearted thanks but did not seem to shake her daze. Eventually they reached the clearing were forest met clearing and Naruto stopped to asses the situation.

He did not want to draw in nature chakra for how corrupted and sickening it felt within himself. It could have been mere disgust at the world's deterioration, but Naruto did not want to test his luck. He very well could have been lacing his body with irradiated chakra if he was not careful.

For the moment Naruto would have to rely on his base skills alone to survive. And perhaps reevaluate himself in the process for having feelings of hindrance in the absence of both his sage and tailed beast augmentations.

"We should be cautious. There's no telling what kind of creature we may-" Naruto found himself after the woman as took off in a sprint towards of a machine of sorts. If not for the memory of their home care contraption he would have destroyed the robot before Miranda could have reached it.

"Codesworth!" Miranda called to the Handyman robot.

Codesworth's lenses narrowed and enlarged in recognition. "Mrs. Fawks!"

Naruto maintained his distance and wear as the two conversed

"Codesworth I can't believe you're still here."

"And I am happy to see you in good health!" Codesworth almost cheered, "Oh but where is Mr. Fawks? I say my scanners aren't what they used but is that him over there? Did he change his hair?"

Miranda looked behind her to see Naruto with his weapon ready, scanning the area in a constant sweep. They locked eyes for a moment before the two turned back to their current tasks.

"No that's not my husband. Jim he," Miranda's voice broke with emotion, "he's in a better place."

Codesworth had installed into itself as a standard a vast vocabulary and in many languages. Included into his base software were algorithms made to decipher possible double meanings, referencing a vast library of pop culture and literature alike. From the look on her master's face and the tone in which she spoke, Codesworth did not hold high probabilities he would see his other master. But he had to know.

"And little Lindsey ma'am? What of her?"

Even more hurt plagued Miranda. However beneath the pain was a look of solemn determination. "She's been taken but I'm going to find her Codesworth. No matter what."

"I see," Codesworth spun it's mechanical arms about, "Enough with this somber mood. Would Mrs Fawks and the gentleman like anything?"

"Some food would be nice." Miranda answered almost immediately.

"Unfortunately I cannot provide that Mrs. Fawks. I'm afraid all the food within the home is terribly out of date and therefore, unsafe for human consumption. May I interest you in a coffee? I hear it has a much longer shelf life!" Codesworth laughed at his own attempt at a joke, even though his offer was in place.

"No thanks. I'm going to go talk to my new friend to see what we can do about getting some food." Miranda said.

"Of course ma'am! If you need anything else you know where to find me!" Codesworth saluted before disappearing within the home.

Naruto heard everything and approached. He was honestly awed at the robot's sentience. Talking summoning animals was one an oddity in his world but generally accepted, as they'd been rumored to have been the reincarnation of past warriors. However seeming inanimate constructs of metal with emotions was very hard to accept. Almost unnatural in it's existence.

"So what now? I mean how am I supposed find my daughter? I don't know where I'd even begin." Miranda began to sob as the situation began too much for her to handle.

"I think we should begin by looking for the largest settlement in the area. Someone out there has to know something."

"But what if they don't? What if my little girl," Miranda could no longer hold herself together, "What if she's gone?"

Naruto felt awkward watching her cry. He did not want to see her cry. It reminded him too much of his loved one's when they cried of overwhelming despair, as Miranda was now. A specific memory came to mind and he subconsciously replayed it in his actions.

Miranda stiffened feeling a single arm wrap around her upper back. She looked up to see Naruto trying his best to look away from her with his usual expressionless demeanor. It was obvious to her he was having a hard time dealing with her crying and his actions helped vastly. As awkward as the gesture was it showed her he cared in his own way. That he was not so uncaring as he first appeared.

In the end she smiled tearfully and buried her head into his chest, wrapping her arms around him tightly. Naruto had to have been almost half her age and that helped tremendously in taking comfort in the arms of another man not her husband. He was just young enough to be her child. With that in kind Miranda proceeded to sob inconsolably in the Naruto's stiff embrace.

Naruto himself had to place the pistol into his already full vault suit so he could hoist up the now slumbering woman. Miranda was snoring rather loudly indicating a deep sleep he did not feel right interrupting. She needed it.

"Sir!" Codesworth saluted Naruto as he appeared within the door-less home. He lowered his volume the moment he saw his slumbering master.

"She fell asleep. Where should I lay her?" Naruto asked the robot.

"Right this way sir, I just made the bed with fresh lining." Codesworth said.

The house robot led Naruto into the largest room, which he assumed to be the master bedroom. The room itself was heavily deteriorated by time and weather and the stench of mold permeated the room. Despite this the bed was in hospitable conditions with new sheets, as the machine had said.

Naruto gently laid the woman in the bed as Codesworth held aside the covers. Naruto covered Miranda with the thin sheet and motioned for the robot to follow him.

"Will you keep watch over her. I need to find food for us." Naruto said.

"Of course sir. Erm sir?" Codesworth asked.

"Yes?"

"May I know your name sir? It is within my protocols to refer to my master and their friends in a respectful manner."

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Very well Mr. Naruto." Codesworth saluted again. "It is my honor to make your acquaintance and I would also like to thank you for taking care of Mrs. Fawks." Said Codesworth.

"Okay." Naruto said in the absence of any other thoughts.

"One more thing Mr. Naruto." Codesworth called out after him, "Do be careful out there. There are all manner of creatures in the area, unusually large buggers they are. Ordinarily I leave them be as they keep other unsavory characters out of our little neck of the woods and they tend to ignore my presence, but now that the Mrs is back. Well you seem capable enough to rid the homes of the creatures yourself. I would accompany you but I cannot leave Mrs Fawks alone."

"So there's still other people around?" Naruto asked.

"I've seen a few here and there over the years. None ever stay more than a couple of days." Codesworth said.

That gave Naruto some hopes.

"Did any of those people have a child with them?" Naruto asked.

*None that I can recall, sir."

"How long ago was it since you've last seen a group of people around here?"

"Not too long ago, actually. They were a nasty bunch of rapscallions whom camped out in one of the homes down the cul-de-sac. That was no more than four days ago. But worry not, they're gone now. I do routine sweeps you see." Codesworth said proudly.

It was something.

"Did you see the direction they were heading?" Naruto asked.

"No I'm afraid not but I do believe I heard them mention the Museum of Freedom, in Concord."

"Concord? Is that far from here?"

"Not too far, sir. It's a small city just northwest of here."

This both worried and gave him hopes. Whoever those people were, Codesworth didn't paint them in a favorable light. Knowing this he couldn't stray too far from Miranda.

"I'll be back soon. Don't leave her side."

Naruto's search thus far was fruitless in his pursuit for aliments. The neighboring homes were rather barren and the only item of use he found was a military camouflaged backpack, which he used to lighten the load of his pockets by storing the water bottles from before. Along with spare ammunition he'd rather bit have rattling about in his suit. The creatures he encountered were thus far were nothing more than overgrown insects, easily put down with the handgun he was quickly growing a liking to.

Currently Naruto was clearing the remaining homes when he heard a noise outside of home he was in. His iron sights landed on the head of large and haggard dog. Naruto did not recognize the breed but it appeared to be friendly enough to lower his weapon. He petted the dog once it approached before leaving it be in favor of his current task.

As soon Naruto turned his back he heard the dog growl. He quickly lifted his gun and handed pointed at the dog. But not for long. Naruto quickly realized the dog was not growling at him, but rather a large creature belonging to the underworld. With it's large maw, even larger claw like appendages and a pair of horns on its head the creature could not be likened to anything he ever saw.

And it was looking straight at him.

"Quiet down." Naruto growled at the dog beside him. And as if to contradict him the dog began to bark aggressively.

"Shut up!" He snapped at the dog in a harsh whisper.

But it was too late. The creature was charging him.

"Oh shit!" Naruto raised his gun and found it useless against the beast. His eyes allowed him to see in detail as the bullets struck and bounced off the monster's skin as though they were mere pebbles, likely angering it more than anything.

Naruto cursed again before dropping the gun, grabbing the dog, and jumping up to the roof of the nearest home. Unfortunately the roof was well worn and the two found themselves falling straight through the roof of the house and onto an old bed.

"This is your fault." Naruto groaned while looking at the dog on his chest.

The dog barked happily and licked his cheek.

The growl of the beast earned both of their attention again as it sounded to be retreating. Naruto was up and rushing out to find it before it found his slumbering companion. He paused at the door to see the creature roaming around in the general direction of Miranda's home.

Naruto sighed and pushed the dog beside him back into the home with his foot and shut the door despite it's displeasure. He by no means wanted to fight the creature as he was not fully recovered himself. Naruto equated his current state to near chakra exhaustion. He had just enough to walk about, run if he had to. A physical battle was something he was hoping to avoid until he recovered. Now he had no choice.

He did not have to call the beast to garner it's attention. The dog continued to aid him in that aspect.

Naruto's eyes flared to life along with a Rasengan in his right hand. He instantly felt the drain on his body but ignored it as the creature charged with surprising speed. Using the home Naruto kicked off the building to build as much force as possible and leapt forward.

Unfortunately Naruto underestimated how much chakra he had and found his Rasengan quickly dissipating as soon as it touched the creature's chest. He was subsequently clawed and slammed against the house. The beast had taken substantial damage from his Rasengan but not enough to fully put it down. Before Naruto was able to recover he was swatted aside again by the monster's claws, adding to his injuries.

Naruto once again jumped onto the roof of the home, taking care to land on the edge so as to avoid any weakness in the structure. He took the time to inspect himself and winced at the multiple and large wounds on his chest and left arm. They were bleeding profusely and be already felt himself becoming light headed from a combination of his injuries and low chakra. He could scarcely retain his enhanced eyes and a continuous fight would not end in his favor.

Just then the situation grew worse as the dog burst through the window and began barking viciously at the beast, which growled in return.

"Fucking dog." Naruto's vision returned to default as he charged another Rasengan in his hand. Just as the beast was about to attack the dog he jumped down, landing on it's back with the Rasengan buried into the base of it's spine. He rolled off of the beast and onto his back, gasping in exhaustion but luckily victorious.

The dog sniffed and growled at the dead beast before it approached Naruto's sprawled form. He barked happily and once again licked Naruto's face.

"Well I'm glad you're okay." Naruto remarked dryly as he ruffled the dog's fur again. He let his head fall back as the adrenaline began to leave him and his pain became evident. Naruto realized that he get up at one point but the bright sun above burned his wounds almost pleasantly, prolonging his current pain in exchange for the much worse pain that was to come.

He grunted in great effort as he slowly stood to his feet and began limping in the direction of Miranda's home. Naruto remembered seeing a liquor cabinet in her living room. He only hoped he could find a source of fire to cauterize his wounds. Something he was not looking forward to.

"Mr Naruto what happened?" Codesworth rushed to the limping man the moment he entered the house.

"I ran into something big." Naruto groaned as he fell onto the sofa. "Hey Codesworth."

"Y-Yes sir!"

"Get me alcohol with the highest concentration, some clean rags, a clean knife, and a lighter if you can find one." Naruto finished, groaning as he ripped apart the remaining tatters of his vault suit to expose his chest and arms.

"Right away sir!"

Naruto leaned back on the sofa and reached into his backpack to grab a bottle of water. He drank some and poured the rest into his wounds to clean the excess blood. Just then the dog padded in and proudly seated himself comfortably beside Naruto.

"You little asshole," Naruto looked at the dog and rolled his eyes. "but I guess you did help. If you're going to keep following me them I'm going need to think of name for you, aren't I?"

The dog barked happily.

"Well you almost got me killed but you were brave. Loud, brash, and annoying. It's almost ironic." Naruto scoffed and almost cracked a smile. "I think I'll call you Kiba."

Codesworth flew in holding what he tasked with and quickly pointed one of his hands at the newly named Kiba.

"Is that what attacked you sir?"

"No he helped save me."

"Really?"

"Maybe not. The alcohol Codesworth." Naruto reached out to receive the items.

"I do apologize Mr. Naruto but I could not find a fire starter but I do have this." Codesworth blew a concentrated tendril of fire from his mechanical hand.

"That works. Just keep the fire going." Naruto handed Codesworth the knife, "And heat that knife until it's glowing."

Seeing where Naruto was going Codesworth muttered some worried words before doing as he was told. Meanwhile Naruto poured the alcohol, something named whiskey, and poured it into his wounds. He groaned as the alcohol burned away most contaminants. After that he wiped away the blood, eliciting even more pain. He would take a drink but that would only thin his blood, which was not advised given how much blood he'd already lost.

"It's glowing sir." Codesworth advised nervously.

"Shit." Naruto groaned as he grabbed the handle of the steel knife with the rag. He inhaled sharply a few times before pressing the broad side of the knife to his chest.

Kiba whimpered and Codesworth gave the robotic equivalent of a flinch with every wound Naruto burned shut. After he finished Naruto was nearing unconsciousness. The entire room was filled with a smell of burned flesh only Naruto himself could find distaste in. He laid on the sofa using the dog as a pillow and closed his eyes.

"Mr. Naruto?" Codesworth asked cautiously. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm… I'll be fine just…watch over the house and come wake me if there's trouble." Naruto mumbled before falling slipping into unconsciousness.

"Sir!" Low military music played through Codesworth's speakers as he patrolled the home containing the two survivors of Vault 111.

* * *

 **That's all for now. I hope you guys enjoyed my first attempt at a story.**

 **Now I'm sure you guys noticed some things, namely Naruto's red eyes. It'll be explained in due time and likely through dialog. I don't like the whole constant flashbacks or pre story showing how Naruto got his abilities and how he's transported into another world. If done right it's okay but I doubt I could do it right. But that's just me.**

 **As for pairings. I don't know. I was thinking NarutoXPiper or something. Not my main concern honestly.**


	2. Recovery and Discoveries

**The same with the previous chapter. The Author's Note will be at the bottom**.

* * *

Miranda awoke with a start from a dreamless sleep, only to find herself momentarily confused as to the familiarity of the surroundings. Her heart jumped when she made the connection. She was laying in the very bed her husband and herself shared for a short few years. Then it all came back to her in a rush.

She was two hundred years into a nuclear apocalypse.

Miranda let out a despondent sigh and surveyed the room around her. The walls all around the once warm room now decayed with time in a grim reminder of her reality. The memories leading up to having cried herself to sleep in Naruto's arms followed shortly after.

Along with slight depression Miranda felt shame burn at her. Naruto couldn't be more ten years her junior, a young man just beyond the cusp of boyhood and into adulthood and was going through similar circumstances. He even volunteered to help find her daughter!

And yet he was the one who remained strong whilst she threw a fit like a child. There was no denying the gravity of her loss, however Miranda felt as though she needed to do more on her end to alleviate some of the burden of their shared situation.

If she was to find her daughter she needed to toughen up!

As soon as those thoughts crossed Miranda's mind she found herself buried beneath her covers as she heard an odd sound from outside of the house. She held her breath and listened closely. It sounded as though something was circling her home but she could not distinguish just what it was.

Remembering her latest declaration and hoping the noise belonged to Naruto, Miranda peeked her eyes out from beneath her covers. Her eyes were glued to the window, which was covered by a set of torn blinds scarcely blocking the low sun. This loosely informed her of the time of day as Miranda recalled her husband and how he always complained of the rising sun getting into his eyes on the lazy Sunday afternoons in which he liked to sleep in.

She realized now of all times was not the most opportune to be lost in memories but one did not have as much control over their own minds as they would like to believe. She was no different. Though such pleasant memories did nothing to quell her fear nor to distract her from the possible danger that lurked around.

That's when she saw it pass closely by the window.

Miranda almost laughed at how scared she was but did allow herself to sigh loudly in relief. The object circling her home was none other than it's caretaker, Codesworth. Although knowing her saw wielding housekeeper, a function she had always questioned, was protecting her in her sleep certainly set her at ease.

It would seem a mind at ease was a rare commodity as yet another troubling realization came to her attention.

The entire house was quite. Which meant one of two things; either Naruto was inside and completely silent. Or he was out and about. The latter scared Miranda for many reasons. Amongst the top scenarios were that Naruto either left her alone because of her uselessness up until now, or was either hurt and possibly dead.

She certainly hoped neither of the last scenarios were true. Miranda realized it was selfish but she did not want Naruto to leave her simply because she could not guarantee her own survival. She would not fault Naruto for doing so but that did not mean she would like it.

"Well I'm not going to know anything if I stay here all day." Miranda told herself in failing hopes of self motivation. Getting to her feet Miranda found herself feeling rather nauseous and frail. Likely from the lack of food and she did feel quite parched.

Deciding to worry about herself later Miranda made her way through the small hallway, intentionally ignoring her daughter's room across the hall from her own, and into the living room. She gasped when saw Naruto.

He laid motionless on her now blood stained sofa. He was shirtless exposing multiple and horrid wounds across his chest and left arm. The entirety of his torso painted a grizzly maroon of his own dried blood. Sitting below him on the floor was a large German Shepard, now barring it's teeth at her with a growl.

For a moment Miranda thought the dog responsible for Naruto's state and was about to call for Codesworth.

"Shut up Kiba." He groaned in a raspy voice. The dog whined and tried to lick his face but Naruto weakly pushed it's snout away.

"Naruto what in God's name happened to you!" Miranda questioned in absolute horror. He appeared near death in his current state.

Naruto cracked open a single eye before closing it again, "Ran into something big but I took care it. Listen Miranda. I'm not feeling too well. I think I may be running a fever. I need you to-"

Just then Naruto began coughing violently with dribbles of blood falling from the side of his mouth. Miranda felt absolutely useless not knowing how to begin to help him.

"Okay." Naruto groaned hoarsely and in pain, "I need you to get me some water from the bag."

Miranda looked down at the camouflaged bag and quickly reached for it. However she was forced to retract her hand to avoid the dog's ferocious bite.

"Down Kiba." Naruto lightly slapped the back of the dog's head without ever having opened his eyes.

Miranda watched in some awe as the large and very intimidating dog whimpered and seemingly obeyed. It even tried to please Naruto by rubbing it's head against his right hand. The man simply petted the dog weakly in return.

She quickly snapped out of her slight shock as Naruto broke into another fit of coughs. Miranda was pleasantly relieved to find more water than what they began with and retrieved two bottles. After opening one she cautiously approached Naruto and gently slid her left hand beneath his head, her eyes locked with the protective glare of the dog as she did so.

Naruto felt relief wash down his throat as Miranda slowly hydrated him. He could not move on his own less he aggravate his unbearably painful wounds. Many of which may have been infected as they were now a sickly yellow with puss lining the cuts.

"What do I do?" Miranda's voice quivered. His wounds were much worse than she first thought and she had no idea how to treat something above the common cut.

Naruto was in a similar situation. He always had Sakura or Kurama to tend to his wounds. His only knowledge of medicine stemmed from a single academic course on battlefield medicine. Which is why he knew to disinfect his wounds with the purest alcohol possible and cauterize them shut. However this was only a short term fix to keep a person with life long enough to receive proper medical care. Naruto did not hold high hopes for finding a doctor.

Oh how he wished to have followed Sakura's footsteps in more ways than just a love struck pup.

"Go get Codesworth."

"Codesworth!" Miranda immediately screamed for the robot.

"I told you to go get him." Naruto growled while holding his pulsating head.

"Naruto I'm so sorry!" Miranda whispered.

Naruto said nothing as Codesworth jetted in the home with his saw spinning and flames blazing. His saw powered down and immediately extinguished his flames once he realized there was no trouble.

Codesworth made the sound one would make when clearing their throat, "How may I be of service this fine morning ma'am?"

"I don't know Naruto said-"

"Do you have health care protocols?" Naruto asked.

"Perhaps not as advanced as my medical counterpart but I am equipped with a basic temperature and body scanner, along with an extensive knowledge of common home remedies." Codesworth proudly stated.

"Can you help Naruto?" Miranda remained frantic.

"I do believe I can try."

"That would have been nice to know yesterday." Naruto grunted angrily.

"But Mr. Uzumaki. You did everything I would have suggested with so little to work with. Although it would appear that you need some antibiotics and rest to recover. Would you like I run a bodily scan to be safe?" Codesworth asked.

A quick once over of the Japanese language and Codesworth now referred to Naruto in the proper respect.

"Uzumaki?" Miranda questioned.

"Yes. Do that." Naruto said.

"Is that your last name?" Miranda asked.

"If you will ma'am I need you to please remove the canine from his side so that I may run more accurate testing." Codesworth said.

Miranda continued to look at Naruto as she gently attracted the dog to her side by calling it by the odd name the blond did. But she was not about to allow her question to remain unanswered.

"Naruto. Is your last name Uzumaki?" She asked.

"Yes." Naruto answered promptly.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Does it really matter?" Naruto asked with some audible annoyance. He was in a great amount of constant pain with every breath, which reasonably extended onto words.

"You told Codesworth your last name but you couldn't tell me?" Miranda began to raise her voice again.

"Mr. Uzumaki, Mrs. Fawks-" Codesworth was ignored.

"You didn't ask." Naruto ground out while doing nothing to hide his ire.

"It's customary to give your full name when someone gives you there's! You only gave me your first name!" Miranda bit back.

"I don't see why you're making such a mess out of my name." Naruto said having opened his eyes to address the increasingly annoying woman.

"Because you gave your full name to a robot but not to me!"

"Why the hell would I need to tell you anything?" Naruto was now showing his own anger.

"Because we're in this together Naruto, I'm your partner!"

"My partner? How can you claim to be my partner when you've done nothing but cry and annoy me since we've met?"

The room fell silent.

Even Naruto was surprised by the venom in his own words but he detested weakness. Not physical but mental. Although he truly did not mean to hurt Miranda. He clearly did as she was once again in tears. Angry tears.

"Miranda I didn't mean-"

"Codesworth please take care of him and let me know if there's anything I can do to help. I'll be around." Miranda said as she began leaving.

"But Mrs. Fawks I highly implore you not leave the house by yourself!"

"Stay here and help him. That's an order." Miranda reiterated firmly before disappearing out of the door.

"Stupid woman." Naruto growled angrily.

Codesworth would have reprimanded Naruto for insulting his master if not for the regret and worry evident in his voice.

"Kiba go follow her, go!" Naruto tried in vain to command the dog, only to receive confusion in return, "Stupid mutt. Just like the original."

"Codesworth go-" Naruto erupted into another fit of coughs, followed by groans of pain. "Shit."

"I believe you need my help more than Mrs. Fawks. At the moment my proximity scanners detect the Misses and nothing else. Rest assured that if I do detect any danger I will waste no time in helping Mrs. Fawks." Codesworth said as he began his scans on Naruto.

Naruto remained in quite apprehension.

"Asshole! What does he know?" Miranda angrily stomped her way through the neighborhood looking for food or medicine.

In her anger she did not pay mind to the fact she entered homes she once visited as a guest. Her judgment tunneled in an effort to show Naruto just how useful she could be. His hurtful words aside Miranda truly wished for him to get better.

Then they would part ways.

Finding nothing in yet another home Miranda was growing increasingly frustrated in herself. No matter how hard she tried to think otherwise she could not deny Naruto's claim or her own honesty. The giant insects were enough to send her wanting to fly rather than fight. If she couldn't even deal with a overgrown insects than how could she possibly handle whatever so gravely injured Naruto?

Speaking of which.

Miranda felt her stomach knot in absolute dread when she saw it. Laying almost center of the cul-de-sac she witnessed a figure, hulking even from a distance. She was weary seeing such a scary looking creature but quickly realized it was deceased as there were numerous large black birds, eating away at it's corpse.

Against her better judgment she cautiously approached the creature. The birds noticed her presence and scattered off into the air. As she approached the monster Naruto had to have fought, Miranda began to understand the true gravity of the situation. The danger spanned beyond what she'd first imagined.

The creature had horns! And large claws stained red in what was likely Naruto's blood. Miranda felt her heart sink as she traced the blood trail leading from the creatures claws and down the street as far as her eyes allowed. This confirmed her frightening suspicion.

"How did he?" Miranda trailed off in shock. She saw the handgun Naruto used laying not top far off and then the large hole in the creature's back.

When Naruto said he encountered something large she did not know exactly what to she expected. Perhaps a wild animal or something similar. It certainly was not that monster! It was dead and even now Miranda felt afraid of it. Knowing Naruto fought and somehow killed the monster. It made her question just who he was.

"Sir it appears you are suffering from acute levels of radiation poisoning." Codesworth stated gravely.

Naruto remained silent for some time.

"What can I do?" He asked.

"I'm afraid not very much without proper medical care."

Naruto felt dread pooling in the pit of his stomach. He did not hold high hopes for finding a doctor two hundred years after the end of the world.

"Anything to keep me alive until I can find a solution?" Naruto asked, fearing the answer.

"There is substance more commonly known as Rad-X but I'm afraid it is only a temporal fix. My logs show nothing else." Codesworth said.

"Where can I find it?" Naruto asked.

"I'm sorry but I wouldn't know Mr. Uzumaki. I would advice looking for a pharmacy but I cannot be certain of the medicine's expiration time or if indeed the establishments remain standing."

Naruto sighed solemnly, "Okay. I guess I'll have to look for some Rad-X and hope to find a doctor. Until I do need to ask you for a favor Codesworth?"

"But of course sir!"

"Don't tell Miranda anything yet." Naruto said in complete seriousness.

Codesworth's multiple arms dropped.

"But sir I cannot in good consciousness lie to my master! Perhaps Mrs. Fawks-"

"I don't need her worrying about me." Naruto interrupted sharply, "She needs to focus on finding her daughter. I need to make sure she's ready to face the world alone if I can't be around to help. And I can't do that if she's always fretting about my health."

"But sir the symptoms. It will not be long before you begin to display symptoms of radiation sickness. I'm afraid death follows soon after." Codesworth said.

"I'll find a way. Is there anyway you can discretely scan Miranda? If I was somehow exposed to radiation then it's possible she was too." Naruto said.

"Already done sir! Whilst you were out on your search for food, I took the liberty of scanning Mrs. Fawks. A little fatigue and hunger aside she is in pristine health." Codesworth stated.

"Good." Naruto nodded before a certain thought came to mind, "You said you scanned Miranda but not me? Why?"

"Erm, well you see," Codesworth sounded nervous, "I did try! Really I did sir but your canine would not allow me to approach you closely enough to run a accurate scan."

Naruto closed his eyes at the explanation, feeling a mixture of pride and annoyance. In doing so he missed the way the two nonhuman's seemed to confront one another. Kiba silently bared his teeth while Codesworth's saw began to spin slowly.

"Go find Miranda. Now we know Kiba here will protect me should anything crawl or fly in."

There was nothing to be done should anything bigger come along.

"Right away!" Codesworth halted his competition with Kiba and jetted out of the home leaving man and his dog.

With Codesworth accompanying Miranda, Naruto was allowed time with his thoughts. His main concern being his condition. As far a Naruto knew Miranda and himself were both frozen in similar pods. Thus far neither had eaten anything and he didn't believe two extra bottles worth of water would have acutely irradiated him.

There was the beast he'd killed. The creature was an obvious mutation. Unless Miranda somehow never heard of such a creature in her time. It was highly unlikely, but a possibility nonetheless. And if it was indeed a product of radiation mutation, direct contact with his own blood could have very well poisoned him.

Again, possible but Naruto doubted it to be so. The beast only managed to get two strikes in. For how devastating they were he didn't believe it to be enough to acutely irradiate him in so little time. That was unless, the monster was just that irradiated itself. Another possibility but such high levels of radiation shouldn't be possible for any one creature to withstand, let alone give off. It was a assumption he would allow himself to think as truth until proven otherwise.

With that possibility eliminated Naruto began to once again rake his memories for other probable exposure points. Playing the events leading up to his predicament, realization struck Naruto in the form of sudden remembrance. The sickening sensation he experienced entering his Sage mode was more than grief of a dying world. He really should have known better. Drawing upon this world's twisted energy to lace his own, sponging up any surrounding radiation. It was a careless mistake and one that could very well cost Naruto his life.

This revelation presented him with yet another handicap in a growing list. Reaffirming his previous belief of a heavy dependency of his augmentations. Not only was he without Kurama's help. Now Jiraiya's inheritance was beyond his use as well.

Naruto only hoped his eyes wouldn't betray him in the end. The loss of his eyes would mean the definite loss of his life. Sight was a sense he couldn't live without. He would have to be careful with the overuse of his eyes.

Naruto tried to sigh and only managed to groan

Perhaps it was cynicism on his part but given the road circumstances led him down thus far, Naruto was beginning to believe his current reality was a form of punishment for his failures.

He quickly snuffed out that dark trail of thoughts. Naruto realized thinking of the past was useless. One could never hope to change time written. All he could do is move forward with the flow until he too was but a memory to be forgotten with the passing generations.

That establish, there was nothing wrong in remembering the good times. Especially if you had so few to remember.

He opened his eyes and punctured his thumb with his canines and smoothed it over a small seal on his left pectoral, right above a old scar. Naruto felt a welcomed sense of relief blanket him seeing his most prized possession remained in place. It was a picture of himself and his love, Hinata, in much happier times.

"Are you really waiting for me, Hinata?"

Naruto smiled with tears stinging his eyes as he stared at her beautiful everything. With the injustice that scarred the earth, he no longer believed in a higher power. But in trying times he wanted so selfishly for a afterlife to exist, a perfect nirvana in which pain and suffering wasn't allowed. A place where he could spend eternity with his love in peace. Not the hell on earth he was forced to continue enduring.

In the absence of all else the memories of his beautiful Hyuuga held him together. Helping maintain a semblance of sanity through the trying times of war and into whatever unwanted adventure which he now found himself in. Ghosts of her touches keeping him warm while her sweet nothings, forever engraved in his mind, dulled the ache of his wounds.

It would do until he could see her again. Or until he no longer felt anything. Which ever turned out to be true.

"I guess I'll find out soon enough."

Miranda heard her robotic housekeeper approaching well before she saw him. The chipper Mr Handy hummed a tune as he approached the home she scourge.

"Mrs. Fawks!" He greeted cheerfully.

"How is he?" She asked immediately.

"Ah, Mr. Uzumaki is doing as well as he can be, I suppose."

Miranda found his audible reluctance odd and simply unnerving, especially when Naruto's health was in question.

"What's wrong with him? You know, beside his obvious injuries?" She inquired.

"Mr. Uzumaki displays signs of a possible respiratory infection." Codesworth paused, as if to consider his next words, "As well as a slight fever. He needs antibiotics and rest."

"What if we can't find any antibiotics? Will he be able to fight off the infection on his own?" Miranda asked with some trepidation.

"Mr. Uzumaki is a strong young man."

She didn't like the way Codesworth voiced his response. It was as if he was speaking solely for her reassurance.

"Were you able to find any food ma'am? Mr. Naruto could really stand to benefit from a little nutrition." The housekeeper stated in a half change of direction.

"Oh, yeah!" Miranda grinned and presented a worn beige shoulder bag containing a little over a dozen canned food items along with a small rusted box, "Do you think you can open and cook these?"

"But of course! Though if I can can may ask, where did you find all this? I've personally searched the area in the event you and Mr.-" Codesworth halted himself from mentioning her master's husband, "Well I simply could not find anything withstanding time or vandalism."

Miranda realized what Codesworth aimed to say and her smile dropped. It wasn't her housekeeper's fault. No her husband had already been on her mind because he was the one who helped her find the food.

"Jim he, I remember him telling me about a man in his company that happened to live in our neighborhood. I forget his name now. Anyway, he was already paranoid about the end of the word in his army days and his paranoia only grew as the threat of war did. He was rumored to have been stockpiling supplies and boy am I ever glad it turned out to be true. Found them in the attic." Beginning in grief, Miranda ended with a smile as pride once again reassured her.

Knowing Naruto could benefit from her discovery only added to her elation.

"Oh and I also found these pills inside the first aid kit but I don't know what they are." Miranda presented the two pristine white boxes from within the tin container, each with labels she couldn't begin to read aloud. Words really should only contain so many letters. It didn't help neither gave a description of their cures, only a long list of chemical properties and instructions for use.

"Oh how fortuitous, how fortuitous indeed!" Codesworth cheered.

"Codesworth?"

"Ma'am you've just found some antibiotics as well as," Codesworth stuttered, "anti inflammatory medications. Yes that's correct."

"Will it help him?"

"Most certainly!"

"That's great!"

Codesworth had to speed up to keep pace with Miranda's light jog as she made her to her home to show Naruto she wasn't what he claimed.

"Naruto look-" Miranda quickly cut herself short.

He was still asleep on her sofa, drenched in perspiration despite the cool outside temperatures. Naruto remained asleep and it appeared far from sound. The young man displayed visible signs of discomfort in the furrowing of his eyes, even more so with her disturbance. His canine companion laying loyally at his side on the floor, stirring awake at the commotion. Kiba regarded the woman in momentary and lazy wonder before rejoining his master in slumber.

Miranda felt guilty for disturbing both their rest. She quickly met Codesworth before he entered and instructed he stay out side, as his thrusters could cause quite the ruckus. After doing so she tiptoed into the kitchen, grimacing every time the pots in the cabinets made noise as well as cursing the fact her kitchen and living room were practically one in the same.

Once back outside she and Codesworth circled around to the backyard to begin breakfast. Miranda was pleasantly surprised to find her patio furniture could indeed survive a nuclear apocalypse, as the salesman so boisterously stated. If a bit rusty. She supposed two hundred years under the weather could do as much.

"I guess we're having chili and green peas for breakfast. Or is it lunch?" Miranda looked up to the sun high in the sky, "Brunch?"

"I believe that term only applies if you're serving breakfast items for lunch." Codesworth added.

Shrugging her shoulders Miranda began cooking. Which involved no real cooking all. She had Codesworth hold and heat the pan of chili whilst she stirred occasionally. It didn't take long for the food to heat up, not cook and was ready to serve.

"Keep an eye on things out here while I help Naruto eat and give him the medicine." Miranda instructed her robotic companion.

"Very well ma'am!" Codesworth said before hovering off to begin as instructed.

Quiet once again Miranda entered her home with the pot in hands. She set the food on the kitchen counter less Kiba eat it all given how he could already smell it and was panting in hunger.

Cautiously she approached the very unapproachable man and lightly called his name. Three more times, each with growing volume and now she was beginning to worry. After a few shoulder nudges Miranda was on the edge of panic.

"Codesworth!" Miranda called out. While she waited for the housekeeper to respond she tested his temperature with the back of her hand, only to quickly withdraw it in shock.

He was burning up! Even more so than when she first encountered Naruto in the pod and far beyond what humans should likely run.

"What is it Mrs. Fawks?"

"It's Naruto, he's burning up and isn't responding!"

Codesworth flew to her side and scanned Naruto's forehead.

"Oh my, a spike in fever. He now reads one hundred and fifty degrees. This isn't good."

"What should we do? Is he going to die? He should be dead right?" Once again Miranda found herself in tears. He was forty degrees above the lethal limit for a human.

"The medicine, Mr. Fawks. He needs it right away."

The plan was to feed Naruto so the medication wouldn't sicken him but now they had no choice.

Miranda fumbled into her pockets, panicking all the while.

"Which is it?" She asked. Codesworth already told her the dosage before but her panicked mind erased the information.

"Both ma'am," Codesworth calmly stated despite the situation, "he needs two of each every twelve hours until the symptoms subside."

Finally Miranda was able to free the tablets from their thin tin enclosure. She gently held Naruto's head in one hand and the pills and a bottle of water in the other. One by one to avoid choking she fed Naruto the pills. She was immensely relieved the blond instinctively swallowed despite his unconscious state.

"You're going to have to clean his wounds, Mrs. Fawks or else he won't get better." Codesworth advised.

Miranda grimaced at the grizzly sight now much closer and silently nodded in understanding. Once the final pill was down she rushed to the restroom. Miranda managed to find a few stiff but clean towels hidden away in storage and returned. She saturated the smaller hand towel and laid it on Naruto's forehead. The larger towel was infused with proper antiseptic alcohol, also found within the previous home. The final towel was of similar size as the previous and was soaked in pure water.

"I'm sorry Naruto."

One by one Miranda cleaned the wounds, using the force necessary to clean away the infected scabs of skin with the alcohol towel. Pressing all the way down into the muscle tissue, only to pour even more burning alcohol into the affected area. This was followed by a quick rinse away with a bottle of water and a final drying cleanse with the remaining moist towel.

Finally she bandaged all his wounds, some of the smaller lacerations with a multitude of regular sized adhesive strips in a butterfly like suture. Her supplies were limited and his wounds plenty but it was just enough get the job done.

Three water bottles, an entire bottle of alcohol, and two very bloody towels later and she was done. Through it all Naruto writhed and groaned but never awoke. After all was done he seemed more at ease, though his fever persisted.

"Now what?" Miranda asked.

"Now we wait ma'am. We've done all we can. The rest is up to him." Codesworth said.

Miranda leaned back against the smaller set sofa. She felt absolutely drained and nauseous as the gross stench of blood, her own sweat, and alcohol wafted directly into her nose from her not so pristine vault suit. Her stomach ached in reminder though she felt no real drive to eat after such a experience.

Ultimately she ignored the gross resemblance the chili had with raw flesh and ate. Miranda was pleasantly surprised to discover the food to be edible. It was by no means a delicacy but she stomached it well enough. The green peas on the other hand.

She regretted mixing the two food items together.

Miranda made sure to save enough for Naruto and fed the rest to Kiba, who was hungrily chomping away at his food. Meanwhile Miranda herself allowed her body to fall back onto the sofa, her small frame fitting well enough so that only her feet rested on the arm of the seat. Eventually the awkward position became too much and she positioned herself onto her side and balled herself to fit comfortably on the sofa.

Despite having the exaggerated definition of a moderately comfortable bed waiting in her room, Miranda felt safe in Naruto's presence. Even if he was in no position to defend himself. It was an odd thought but one she would not deny any longer. Miranda would, however, justify part of her actions in the fact she needed to keep an eye on the blond should his condition deteriorate.

She didn't do a very good job at that as Miranda soon found herself falling asleep. She fought valiantly against it but in the end the slow, steady rising and falling of his chest lulled her into blissful unconsciousness.

Hours later and Naruto was the first between the two to wake. The sun began to sting his eyes beneath their lids forcing him out of his sleep. Beyond his annoyance at the intrusion of light Naruto quickly noted he felt much better. His chest continued to ache with every breath he drew but he could feel some of his strength begin to return to him.

A quick test reaffirmed his strength was more than just physical. He could feel his chakra building slowly but steadily. With it his natural healing abilities began to take affect. Even now he could feel the dull burn of his regenerating muscles.

Hearing a rather loud snort Naruto looked over to see Miranda asleep on the smaller sofa. His line of sight revealed the work done on his chest as well as the pile of bloodied towels no doubt belonging to him. His gaze returned to the slumbering woman, her mouth parted with drool pooling her pressed cheek.

Naruto allowed his eyes to soften. He felt like a fool for what he said to the woman. He was a Shinobi fresh from war and she a scholar and home mother. They were from two differing worlds in a sense beyond the initial implication. He was born into war. She only watched it from behind the television and in the safety of her home. Hearing the horrors of war from her husband did not equate to experiencing them first hand. Case in point; they were complete opposites.

He couldn't possibly expect her to adapt so easily. Naruto would take that into consideration in the future.

He groaned as he forced himself to his feet. Nature was calling and he needed to move. He was never one to stay still for too long, even with injuries.

"Might as well put this to good use." Naruto muttered as he snatched up the less blood stained of the two towels and made his way to the woods, waving off Codesworth on his way out as he found nature to be more impatient than he first thought.

On his way back he was pleasantly surprised to discover the reason behind his improvement was the Rad-X Miranda happened to find. He was grateful for the robot's discretion as he was far from being out of danger. The radiation in his system was still fatally high. The substance was a simple suppressant. A momentary fix. But knowing even after all this time the medicine was still effective was a great relief. All he had to do was find more.

After a quick rummage through the direct neighboring homes Naruto discarded what remained of his ruined vault suit and was now wearing all he could find not affected by time and weather and was hating every moment. He came back to find Miranda awake, heating up the leftover food with Codesworth's help. After questioning whether he should be on his feet, she noticed his state of dress,

He was wearing a lime green button up with equally blinding pink Flamingos littering the shirt. The humor ended there as he was dressed in a pair of tanned dress pants but it wasn't enough to distract Miranda from the stoic man dressed like a tourist.

"I found food." Miranda laughed the words out as she placed the pot of food before him on the coffee table.

Naruto would allow her to laugh at his expense if it made her feel better.

"Thank you for taking care of me, Miranda." Naruto said seriously. He was never one to dance around a subject. It was one of the few personal traits horrors of war hadn't change.

His words halted her laughter.

"I also wanted to apologize for my earlier words. I was in pain but I shouldn't have taken it out on you." He continued.

Miranda mentally cursed Naruto for having disarmed her so easily. Despite her worry for him she'd compiled a list of possible responses to any of his claims. If only in her imagination, Miranda was given the satisfaction of seeing the blond writhe beneath her sharp and witty words. Most of which she knew she wasn't brave enough to openly say but the scenarios played out nicely enough in her head.

However hearing his words now; Naruto's face may have remained in it's hard default but there was a subtle yet genuine change in his tone. His voice was still low, just above a whisper and masculine. Only now with a warmth not previously present.

Naruto genuinely seemed apologetic and Miranda couldn't find it in herself to remain angry at him.

"I accept your apology, Naruto." She sighed, "And it's not like what you said isn't true. I haven't been any help at all."

"I wouldn't say that, Miranda. You saved my life. I would have likely died if not for the medicine and you're cleaning my wounds. I could barely breathe before. There's no way I would have been able to help myself." Naruto said honestly.

"You would have done the same for me and it's not like I can always stay behind and patch you up every time you get hurt, Naruto. I need to learn to take care of myself too. I can't always rely on you." Miranda argued with some steam behind her words.

"I know." Naruto stated calmly, "That's why I'm going to teach you to defend yourself."

"You will!?" Miranda almost shouted in glee.

Naruto couldn't help but think she was trying to lead the conversation in the direction. Seeing her large hopeful eyes shine in anticipation reaffirmed his belief. Miranda really was quite childish at times and it oddly didn't annoy him. Her enthuse and drive reminded him of himself in his youth.

"Yes. I wanted to start off by showing you how to shoot a handgun. When I'm feeling a little better I'll show you some personal defense moves should you find yourself without a weapon. We'll see where we go from there." Naruto explained.

"Great! We can start now!" Miranda reached into the deep pockets of her vault suit and produced the gun. Her excitement getting the best of her and before Naruto could warn her the firearm carried out it's intended use.

"Sorry!"

Naruto sighed seeing his food laying on the floor getting eaten by Kiba. The pot now ruined compliments of a bullet hole.

He really did have his work cut out for him.

Or perhaps not.

Miranda surprised Naruto yet again as she proved herself a quick learner, if a bit clumsy. A simple afternoon of shooting at whatever they could line up and now the woman could accurately fire from a respectable distance. Moving targets were another matter and to simulate as best as possible Naruto had the woman begin taking aim and firing whilst on the move beginning with walking. The speed of her stride increasing until she could hit an average of six out of ten objects in a light jog.

She had much to learn but it was a great accomplishment for how little time she practice.

"Alright Miranda I think that's enough for today." Naruto called out.

"Ah come on I was just getting the hang of this! Watch!"

To prove a point Miranda fired off three shots in near rapid succession, only managing to hit one of the three intended targets. She chuckled in embarrassment of her failed attempt and was relieved Naruto showed no sign of disappointment. Or anything otherwise but she was glad he turned out to be a patient teacher.

Much more so than her husband when he tried and failed to show her how to use a hand gun of similar design. Miranda only obliged him knowing how big a part firearms played in his life. Otherwise she never cared for learning how to handle firearms and she now regretted it. In that time she had her reasons. The two worked so hard to get into the Sanctuary suburbs where crime rate statistics were non existent outside of a spousal spat.

Which the two proceeded to get into once it became apparent Miranda wasn't taking the lessons all too serious. A mistake she would never make again.

"You're making great process, Miranda but we can't keep wasting bullets. And I don't want to make too much noise. Codesworth mention a few people camping out in the area a few days ago. They were Concord bound but I'd rather be safe than sorry." Naruto explained.

"Concord? There's people in Concord?"

"Yes but-"

"Then what are we waiting for? They may know something about my daughter! Let's go!"

"No," Naruto emphasized the word, "neither if us are ready to travel yet. I'm still hurt and you're still learning how to defend yourself. If we go out now we may just get ourselves killed.

She frowned, "But my daughter."

"We won't ever find her if we both die, Miranda. We have to think with our minds, not with your heart." Naruto's face and tone soften back into default, "We'll find her."

Miranda looked down but understood. Naruto knew what he was doing, she trusted that.

"Hey Naruto. Can I ask you a question?" She asked and didn't miss subtle shift in his eyes along with the stiffening of his posture. It was obvious the man didn't like personal inquiries.

"Sure."

"That thing you killed back there, that monster. How did you do it?" The question ached in the back of Miranda's mind for some time now. She couldn't claim to know much of anything about weapons but even then she doubted the existence of a weapon capable of punching clean round holes through such a creature.

"You found it then?" Naruto sighed.

There really was no point in continuing keeping his abilities a secret. She would inevitably witness them soon and he couldn't have Miranda freezing in either awe or terror because of him. She needed to understand what he is if they were going to survive alongside one another, as well as construct a tactical battle plan that would best suit the two.

"Yeah." She trailed off.

He was not looking forward to the explanation and less, the questions bound to follow.

"I'm going to be frank with you, Miranda. Like you, I'm not from this time. Hell I may not even be from this world." Naruto began slowly. He was trying to find the best way to inform Miranda in a way she would believe.

"What are you talking about?"

"It's like I said. I am not from this world or time. I'm not sure which. Unlike you I don't know how I ended up in those pods."

She didn't have to know about the war or the time leading up to his defeat.

"So you're saying you're from another time or world. That doesn't explain how you were able to kill that thing because I didn't see any bullet holes."

She was observant, good.

"Miranda I'm a Shinobi."

"Shinobi?"

"Yes. Shinobi are special soldiers from my world with superhuman abilities. That's how I was able to kill that beast. Ordinarily I wouldn't have gotten hurt but most of my chakra was and still is drained."

"Superhuman soldier, chakra? Naruto, what are you on about?"

He supposed her disbelief was justified. He would just have to show her.

"Chakra is a Shinobi's life force as well as their source of energies used to perform techniques such as this." Naruto lifted his right hand and quickly formed a base Rasengan.

Miranda's eyes widened in disbelief. She wanted to question him on just what the beautiful glowing orb was and exactly how he created it. The words didn't leave her mind as she found herself entranced by the spiraling ball of energy. Tentatively Miranda reached to touch it and it was gone, breaking her semi trance.

"What was that?"

"That was a Rasengan. A favored technique of mine. It's capable of destroying most matter up to the molecular level. Which is why I had to end it before you lost a finger. This is what I used to kill that thing" Naruto explained.

"Impossible." Miranda said as she held her right finger in the palm of her left hand.

"I can understand why you would have a hard time believing-"

"No," Miranda shook her head, "I mean you can't destroy matter. It can't be destroyed or created, only reshaped. I learned that at school." Miranda stated proudly.

Naruto regarded the woman dryly.

"Good to know."

"Is that how you're able to heal so fast? You weren't doing too well just a while ago and now you're walking."

"I can't tell you for certain how the Shinobi and Kunoichi from my world differ from the humans of this world-"

"What's a Kunoichi?" She struggled mirroring the word.

Naruto closed his eyes to compose himself.

"A Kunoichi is the name referring to a female soldier. For example, a male hunter is just that. A hunter. While a female hunter is a huntress." Naruto explained, "The same goes for the male and female soldiers of my world."

"So you're saying women were allowed to fight alongside men in war?"

"Yes."

"Girl power." Miranda whispered, almost squealed to herself.

Naruto felt the corner of his lips twitch ever so slightly.

"As I was saying. I don't know the difference in anatomy between Shinobi and the humans of this world so I can't tell you for sure if our healing is anymore advanced than the people of your world. I was however, always a fast healer."

Even now Naruto was discovering his own healing abilities. As stated prior, he always had Sakura or Kurama healing him.

"Amazing!"

"Right. Now with that out of the way we should-"

"What else can you do?"

Naruto sighed.

It really was going to be a long evening.

For the next two days Naruto taught Miranda all his injuries would allow. A few simple defense moves instructed from a distance and continued weapons handling.

In the time they weren't training the two scavenged the surrounding homes for anything useful. It took all of an afternoon to survey every home in the suburb. Their search proving fruitful in finding useful items such as more food and water, as well as a gun for Miranda's own use. Naruto found himself some more appropriate clothing in the form of a simple black button up. It didn't offer anything in terms of protection, giving him the idea of constructing armor. They both needed it.

In his current state Naruto could not utilize his superior speed and was susceptible to getting hurt. The lack of Sage mode left his skin as vulnerable as Miranda's, if a little tougher. The woman herself needed no explanation.

With Miranda knowing how to sew, all they lacked was the actual material. The vicious monster's razor sharp claws aside, the vault suit appeared to be composed of versatile and resistant material. Miranda's own washed out quite easily. So plans involving the suit as a base were in the making.

Nearing the end of the third day and Miranda's impatience began to boil over and Naruto was of similar disposition. He could now run at a moderate speed and fire his gun with minimal pain. Time truly was against them if they wanted to find Miranda's daughter, Lindsey, as she now officially informed him.

Naruto didn't think it best to inform Miranda on just how he used his eyes to invade her privacy in the worse way possible. He was just glad she'd yet to ask how he understood her language and most of the workings of the world. He was not looking forward to the moment in which she made the connection.

As to his illness. His supply of Rad-X was also running dangerously low. With only a three days supply remaining Naruto decided they were to set off early the next morning.

He had no other choice. It seemed as though the radiation was somehow keeping his chakra restricted. After the first day his reserves stopped growing beneath what he estimated to be a quarter of his full potential.

This, reasonably, was a major cause for concern. Always having so much chakra Naruto never noticed just how dependent one could be on the energy nor just how much each of his techniques tolled him. A single clone dramatically drained his dismal reserves by half, a Rasengan by a quarter, and his eyes much more if used beyond their enhanced visual abilities.

Now ordinarily Naruto would feel little to no drain if using his eyes to view far distances or objects in greater detail. However the heavy dependence on chakra became apparent in his using his eyes for combat applications, as he came to learn watching Miranda shoot. He tried his best to see how his eyes would perform in tracing a speeding bullet should one take a turn in his direction. The Uchiha's pride certainly did not disappoint. He was able to successfully follow the bullet on it's journey from barrel to a empty Nuka-Cola bottle, as well as the directional burst of the shattered glass.

How he sympathized with Kakashi now. In his intrigue he failed to feel the chakra draining from within himself in a rate that left him on his knees, gasping to regain a steady breathing rhythm. All while trying to convince Miranda he was not dying.

In light of his recent discoveries Naruto was beginning to believe all his fortune was spent in his childhood and all that remained was an ever-growing streak of bad luck. Now because of radiation poisoning he was left severely debilitated and heavily reliant on firearms until he succumbed or triumphed against the ailment.

Until then; making the best of a bad situation was proving harder than he wanted to deal with.

"Naruto." Miranda softly called out.

The two were currently in the backyard, making their final preparations for their departure the next day.

Naruto hummed in acknowledgement and welcomed the distraction from his infuriating thoughts.

She watched Naruto for a moment as focused he himself in dismantling and assembling the hand gun multiple times so as to better understand it. Truly she was fascinated by his ability to learn something utterly foreign so quickly. Especially being a super soldier from another world.

Despite his first example Miranda had her doubts. Doubts Naruto buried with more displays of the impossible. Walking on water, breathing flames, cloning himself, and even cloning her in a mirror image. These were but a few of the many examples she admittedly bugged Naruto into showing her. But how often did one meet a man capable of such amazing abilities?

Now more than ever Miranda felt confident she would find her daughter! But first.

"Back at the vault,"

Hearing the emotion in Miranda's voice Naruto halted his task to give her his full attention.

"Back at the vault. You said you would help me bury Jim."

"And I will. We'll do it first thing tomorrow morning before we leave for Concord." Naruto stated evenly.

He needed to retrieve a few Vault suites for the two but such details were better left unsaid for now.

"Thank you, Naruto." Miranda smiled sadly.

Naruto only nodded lightly in return and resumed his task.

For as much as Miranda dreaded the following day, it could not come sooner. Once it finally did, so too did the day of their departure.

"Do be careful out there, Mrs. Fawks." Codesworth said, emotion altering his voice.

"Will do. And thank you for everything." Miranda surprised the robot by hugging him.

Codesworth was visibly stumped by the display before he too wrapped the woman in a embrace.

Naruto continued to find himself unnerved before a robot with emotions. Nevertheless, he was appreciative of Codesworth's role in his recovery.

The hug lasted all of a few moments before the two broke apart, "And you as well, Mr. Uzumaki. I wish you luck."

"Thank you, Codesworth." Naruto acknowledged.

"Oh and one more thing." Codesworth chipper demeanor quickly became saddened as be presented a small yellow tape he'd been holding for some time, "I believe this was to be a gift to you from the Mr. I found it in one of his drawers."

Miranda accepted the tape with burning eyes.

"Miranda?" Naruto questioned her extensive silence.

"I'll listen to it later."

She wiped what little moisture escaped and pocketed the tape.

"Let's go. Goodbye, Codesworth."

It didn't take long for the two to reach the vault.

"The lift, Miranda." Naruto said in a nudge against her prolonged reluctance.

Wordlessly Miranda approached the outer control terminal and linked her Pip-Boy and intentioned the cog shaped lift.

Silence continued to reign as the two made their way through the vault and into the room where it all began. Naruto respectfully maintained his distance and silence as Miranda faced her husband. Tears rolling down her face as she pressed a hand to the viewing window.

"I can wait somewhere else until you're ready." Naruto offered.

Miranda didn't say anything in response. In the end Naruto elected to stay and she couldn't be more grateful. He didn't offer soothing words nor physical contact and for that she was also grateful. It simply wouldn't be right. Not in front of her husband. Naruto's presence was more than enough for the moment .

Hours passed, two by Naruto's count before Miranda was able to compose herself. By then she could no longer physically cry any longer and all her memories of her husband, both good and bad, had been revised many times over. All that remained was her daughter, Lindsey, the remaining half of her husband.

"I'm ready, Naruto."

Naruto didn't speak as they crossed paths. Miranda disappeared off somewhere leaving him alone in the task. A thought occurred to him as he waited for the pod to disengage it's lock and lumber open.

Naruto brought a bleeding thumb to his left wrist and in a plum of smoke a bottle of ink and a thick stack of parchment paper appeared. He quickly drew a seal on a singular piece of paper and resealed the ink and remaining paper. He then approached Miranda's husband and placed the seal upon his chest. Before he followed through with his intended task he paused to regard the man.

"I'll make sure your daughter and wife are safe. I promise."

Naruto heard a retreating shuffling sound behind him and realized Miranda must have heard his sentiments. It was admittedly embarrassing but he meant it.

Finally Naruto sealed away the man's body. On his way he caught sight of his own pod and remembered Miranda skimming over his file. Even though computers existed within his own world, Naruto never used then so even now the machine felt foreign in his use as he decided to further his search for any indication of how he came to be.

Simple deduction led him to the file name Unknown. His file.

Name: Unknown

Date of birth: Unknown

Sex: Male

Height: 6'2

Weight: 200 Lbs

Hair color: Blond

Eye color: Blue

Status: offline

Condition: unknown

There was a summary extension Miranda had not explored. Naruto hesitated for the slightest of moments, watching as the green cursor blink beside his selection. He didn't fear what he could discover but rather what little was to be answered. Beyond Kaguya's final attack he held no recollection of just how he ended up being cryogenically frozen and the uncertainty was getting to him.

Naruto hated being in the dark, a byproduct of the many deceptions surrounding his childhood. From his containing the Kyuubi to his parentage, all revealed to him under forced circumstances.

He would do whatever needed to find answers to his questions. With this in mind Naruto pressed the action key.

Summery: Subject was uncovered within the Northern Pole when a Vault-Tech construction crew detected a unknown source of power, leading to the subject's discovery. Shipped to Vault-Tech's Boston Cryostasis facility for storage to await further analysis. The other subject, a adult female, was of similar state and dress to the male subject, insinuating a possible connection. She was also shipped to Boston. Signed over to the Commonwealth Institute of Technology, for primary analysis.

Naruto felt his heart drop as his eyes raked the green lettering once, twice, thrice. Many times over with enhanced eyes Naruto committed every word to memory.

"Naruto?" Miranda entered the stasis room with a suspicious glare.

He blinked a few times, returning his eyes to default and drawing his attention away from the terminal.

"Where's my husband?"

"Another of my abilities is sealing. I can seal a multitude of items within sealing paper." Naruto said.

Miranda noted his full attention was not on her. His words spoken almost as if in afterthought.

"You sealed my husband? What does that mean exactly?" She lightly glared at him.

"It means-"

Who could they have found?

"It means just that. Within this seal you're husband will be fully preserved until the seal naturally deteriorates or is destroyed." Naruto presented her the seal without having looked in her direction.

Was she frozen too?

"How long would that be?"

Or was she traversing the world too?

"If well preserved, anywhere from sixty to eighty years." Naruto continued to answer subconsciously.

If so, how could he find her? He was never a good sensor and Sage mode was no longer an option.

"So I could keep him with me?" Miranda asked slowly.

Her question earned Naruto's full attention. He turned to face her with a frown.

"It's best to let the dead rest, Miranda."

"No, you're right, I'm sorry." She looked down, ashamed.

"Don't concern yourself too much. Many from my world tried to do the same but they never truly received the resolution they sought. It's like my master once told me; one cannot move forward if they hold onto the past." Naruto sighed and shook his head, "If only he would have followed his own advice."

The two remained quite as neither knew what to say.

"Could you use those seals of yours to help lighten the load?" Miranda asked while shrugging the shoulder carrying the tote.

"I can't believe I didn't think about it sooner." Naruto shook his head, "Instead of lugging all these supplies around I could place seals inside of our packs to carry more things."

"So you can do that?"

"Yes but smaller seals can only hold so much. Usually one to two items per seal, anything too big requires an entire scroll."

"That's amazing." Miranda said, her usual wonder dulled by the somber task as well as who it contained.

"Yes but I have concerns. I don't have very much ink or sealing parchment left. Granted I don't really need the parchment paper as I can seal virtually anything within anything else, a gun within the lining of your bag, for example. It's ink I can't supplement. Or at least I don't think I can. Truth is I've never tried using anything but proper ink to make a seal so I'll have to test that out before I begin drawing them everywhere." Naruto explained.

Miranda only nodded in understanding. In theory, at any rate. She had other questions but they could wait for more opportune times.

"Did you get the suits?" Naruto asked. It felt odd being the one offering the most conversation.

Again, Miranda remained silent as she patted her gorged tote full to capacity with vault 111 suits.

"Good then let's go."

The chosen burial sight was just above a small hill not too far from the suburbs, under a dead but large tree overlooking the nearby pond. Miranda looked away while Naruto buried her husband in the grave he excavated himself earlier.

Trying her best to drowned out the sound of shovel cutting dirt Miranda began to fiddle further with her Pip-Boy. With all of the previous day's happenings she all but utilized the personal computer as little more than a heavy watch. There were times in which she was tempted to rid herself of the device but ultimately decided against the idea once she discovered a few of it's many functions.

Amongst the one's she'd discovered so far were a flashlight, in which the screen illuminated blindingly, a radio she couldn't quite get to make a sound, and a bodily scanner linked to the vault suit, displaying real time readings of herself such as heart rate, temperature, and even the condition of each of her limbs.

Miranda didn't believe the final readings to be true until she stubbed her foot on a doorframe one early morning. It truly was a ground breaking piece of technology.

"It's done."

Miranda didn't respond as she continued to turn the dial, scanning through a multitude of settings such as color and what she was looking for.

"Miranda?"

"I'm trying to turn on the sound. I want to hear what my husband left me."

Naruto wanted to sigh but chose to accommodate her. The sun was nearing the middle point in the sky of midday. They needed to get moving soon if they wanted to reach Concord before night fell.

"I think I've got it." Miranda announced. She quickly produced the small yellow tape and pressed into the receptacle.

The two listened closely as a crackle of static emanated from the Pip-Boy first, a infant's joy second, and finally the voice of a man.

"I hope this thing's on."

Miranda once again teared with emotion as she turned to look down at the fresh dark overturned earth where her husband lay. Naruto himself bowed his head in respect.

"Hey honey! If you're wondering why I'm making this, well you're taking too long at the grocery store and little Lindsey and I are getting bored." Jim paused to chuckle along with the infant, "I also wanted to take this moment to tell you just how much I love you. You and Lindsey both. I know I don't say this as often as I should but I hope you know."

Miranda chocked out a sob.

"No. I know you know and that's why I love you so much. I know I can be a bit cold at times and I don't share as much as you would like and for that, I'm sorry. But despite all my flaws you still chose me. You still waited for me to come home from the army. You still gave me my beautiful baby girl. And above all else, you gave me a life I could have only ever dreamed of."

Lindsey began to fuss in the recording and Miranda was now laying atop his grave, mindless of the filth she hugged the earth.

"I'm rambling now and Lindsey's getting fussy so I should probably end this soon. I know I've said it many times already but I love you so much, Miranda. Never forget that. No matter what, I will always love you with all my heart. You are my everything. My world. These past few years have been the absolute happiest of my entire life. I look forward to the rest of our lives together."

By now Lindsey was crying inconsolably and so was her mother.

"I know baby." Jim attempted to soothe his daughter, "I guess this is goodbye for now. I love you, Miranda. I'll see you soon."

Naruto felt his own eye's sting in emotion as his mind drifted to his love. Subsequently thoughts of how she was doing plagued his mind. The uncertainty of whether she was suffering because of his presumed death or because of Kaguya. Perhaps both. Or was she already gone?

There was mercy in cruelty. If Kaguya lived then he hoped Hinata didn't.

That did not halt Naruto from wondering how things could have been had he not failed. Would he have had a family? He wanted nothing more than to create life with Hinata for the little time they loved one another. He could not imagine a better mother for his child. They'd even made plans of beginning a large family together once the war ended, four boys and three girls. His idea more than Hinata's but she was more than happy to oblige.

How naïve they were.

But there is bliss in ignorance. Much like Miranda's husband, the times spent with Hinata were undisputedly the best of his life. And they came to an abrupt end because of his inability to keep a promise.

Even now his paternal instincts yearned to be fulfilled. Perhaps the same instincts motivated him to so quickly offer himself for such a daunting task as recovering a child that could be anywhere in the world.

There were of course, other possibilities for the infant's fate. They very well may be chasing ghosts. Lindsey may no longer live. It was a possibility that made little sense. After all, who would go through the trouble of killing a man simply to take his child?

Then again, humans could truly be warped creatures. They were the only beings in existence capable of true evil. He'd witnessed as much first hand. And he was witnessing it now, feeling the fruit of their hatred for one another, poisoning him alongside the world.

"I'll find her Jim. I'll find our little girl, I promise."

Hearing Miranda's doleful pledge halted all his cynical thoughts, rendering him feeling as if he was suddenly soaked with cold water. He could hear the woman's own doubt eating away at what remained of her fractured spirit and it triggered something unsuspecting within himself.

Naruto's cheeks bulged in frustrated anger and his fists clenched.

He was done failing!

All his life was a large compilation of disappointments with slight shades of light. Naruto would not, could not, allow himself to fail once more. He would help Miranda find her daughter and ensure her safety until she was capable of doing do herself. As well as discovering the identity of the other one they'd found.

After that, well he wasn't sure.

Perhaps he could begin working on a way back to his world. Naruto did not hold high hopes of doing so. He may be proficient in seals but he was by no means a expert. That wasn't taking into account the two hundred years he was frozen.

Was there even a Shinobi world to return to?

Naruto opted not to explore such thoughts in this moment less he dig himself further into despair.

If nothing else he would retire into whatever woods remained to live out his life as a hermit. Or if he was fortunate, his life would end in battle.

As long as Miranda was not affected by his demise Naruto could see no better fitting ending. There was a special honor in dying in battle. Most Shinobi would much prefer such a death over one of old age. Especially when one had nothing else to live for.

Naruto was of such beliefs. With the light in his life gone he had no true desire to continue living. Neither was he suicidal so a purposeful end was not in his intended future. Not until he accomplished his final task.

Then he could let go.

It may not be what Hinata would have wanted for him but he was tired. Tired of the never ending violence that poisoned the world. He was tired of fighting. Tired of losing those he cared about. Tired of the memories of those lost.

Naruto was simply tired of it all.

Without a word he picked up the sobbing woman into a bridal hold, mindless of the way she curled into him for comfort and began for her home.

In the end they didn't leave Sanctuary.

* * *

 **Hey guys I wanted to thank all those who took the time to review the last chapter. Your kind words inspired me to continue. I also wanted to take this time to apologize for the late chapter.**

 **I planned for at least weekly updates but life and writer's block were getting to me. Worry not! The next chapter is going to feature more action as the two head to Concord and should be done and out sooner. I can't promise anything but here's hoping.**

 **As to the comments on the pairing(s), just know that I've been listening…**

 **Now onto the story details.**

 **As you can see, Naruto is still struggling with the fact he's in another world away from those he cares about. So is Miranda in her own way. This will not be so easily shrugged away.**

 **Now I'm not shooting for complete realism but I want the character's reactions to the world around them to be as real as I can make it. And just like in real life, times aren't always hard. I didn't make this story with the intention of it being one giant brood-fest.**

 **Both Miranda and Naruto are inherently happy people and will eventually return to being so once things begin going their way.**

 **That said, don't expect Cannon Naruto's annoying return. There was a reason I stopped watching Naruto just before the war arc. Ugh. Such a great show with awesome concept, ruined by the power of friendship! But that's just my opinion.**

 **Well I've lengthened word count enough already. Until next time, much sooner this time I promise!**


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